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About this project

Collectors are passionate people. We are hunters and gatherers of pop culture. We consume it -- no we devour it! Cool & Collected is a magazine that will showcase the items we seek and the people who seek them. The magazine will feature items that may have been on store shelves 20 years ago or more, but we'll also cover products that can be found in stores today.

Having run the website Cool & Collected for several years, I have interacted daily with like-minded collectors. The collecting community is incredibly strong, and while Facebook and Twitter may be great for interacting, a printed (and downloadable) magazine will be a welcome addition to the world of pop culture collectors. We love stuff to put on our shelves, and you just can't do that with a blog post!

What to expect

The articles in the magazine will be informative and engaging, not only to hard-core collectors, but also to casual fans and collectors who might just be getting started. This will be a fun, family-friendly read that anyone can enjoy. Whether you are a completist who has to have every last variant ever produced, or a flea market warrior on the hunt for whatever strikes your fancy, Cool & Collected Magazine is sure to entertain you.

The magazine will be an extension of the Cool & Collected website and will tap into its vast resources of fellow collectors and experts to create articles that will engage and entertain its readers. The premiere issue will feature 64 glossy pages, covering topics such as collectible Nintendo 64 games, Kenner Super Powers action figures, Hot Wheels Retro Entertainment Series, and more! The topics run the gamut from comic books, movie memorabilia, toys, vintage video games -- everything a pop culture collector could possibly want!

Who's behind this?

Allow me to introduce myself... My name is Brian Adams, and I have been the man behind the curtains of Cool & Collected, an online destination for collectors of cool stuff. I have owned my own graphic design business for over 20 years and have been involved in the production of countless publications. A couple of years ago, I started a blogging community known as the League of Extraordinary Bloggers, which is an active community of bloggers who are also collectors. Through the website, and the League, I have come to know many amazing people and collectors.

Cool & Collected magazine is a collaborative effort, with articles from pop culture experts such as:

Future plans

I have every hope that this magazine will grow into a regularly-produced publication with new issues coming out every two months or quarterly, but that all depends on how this first issue is received. So far, this has been an all-volunteer endeavor but it's not realistic to believe that will feasible for future issues. Hopefully, the response will be overwhelmingly positive and we will be able to secure funding avenues that will allow us to produce future issues. Consider this first issue a big toe being dipped in some cold dark waters.

Future considerations will also be made towards publishing for e-readers in addition to the printed magazine. Our current approach will be to offer PDF downloads, which are easy to produce and distribute, but if we are successful, an electronic format other than a PDF might be considered for smart phone and tablet users.

Stretch Goal!

Thank you so much! With seven days to go, the project has reached its initial funding goal. In order to keep things moving in the right direction, we have added a stretch goal:

If the funding level reaches $7,500.00, every backer who signed up to receive a copy of the magazine will also receive a free PDF download of the second issue, which will be produced in early 2014.

That's right, you will get both the first and second issues of the magazine for being a backer of the Kickstarter campaign! Thanks everyone!

Risks and challenges

Putting together a magazine is no simple task--there are plenty of parts that need to be pieced together in order to produce a cohesive, polished publication. The biggest financial hurdles for any publication are the printing and shipping costs. If we didn't have to factor in those two variables, we could publish this magazine strictly with our own blood, sweat and tears, but we want something to hold in our hands, and put up on the shelf! We have already decided upon a printer and the magazines will be packed and shipped right here in my office -- I have two very handy helpers who will literally work for cookies if it comes to that.

I have always been a big dreamer, and seeing this magazine become a reality would fulfill one of my biggest dreams. Thank you for taking the time to consider this project and if you decide to become a backer of this Kickstarter campaign, I would like to extend a huge "thank you" for helping to make my dream a reality.